Canadian Lawyer - sample

w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m M A Y 2 0 1 7 51 You need neutrals with special skills. You require someone who can bridge the cultural gap and someone who can sort through multiple layers of conflict." He says he's been refining techniques because the mediation process is fluid. "Going down the road we're going to be thinking about how can we refine our approach, how can we make it better? We've seen it work and now we have to take on some tougher challenges." Another trend noted was an increased interest in ADR by younger partners and associates in litigation firms. Though Casey says there is a higher degree of co-operation expected and he finds in some cases they still have to edu- cate counsel on that fact, he speculates younger lawyers are more comfortable because they've taken a course in ADR, noting when he went to school there was no such thing. "Canada is small, relatively speak- ing," he says. "If you can't get educated by experience, the only other way is to get educated by learning through books and courses and whatnot. I think in this country in particular education is the key." Torrie, who has been practising ADR since the late '80s, says he's seen an evolution in mediation practice that has become a stand-alone discipline of mediation advocacy. Most lawyers on the civil side accept their cases will most likely be argued in a mediation room than a courtroom, he says, and as a consequence the "skill package" they need is a combination of advocacy and negotiation — and there is a corresponding trend in the training of lawyers that he says is positive. Torrie spoke to Canadian Lawyer from an empty classroom at Queen's University School of Law where he was waiting to speak to a class focused on mediation advocacy and skills. "What we're seeing now are lawyers who are emerging from law schools into a practice where they're more focused on how they're going to be successful in a mediation as opposed to a trial," he says. Osgoode Hall Law School at York University is also offering classes on ADR. Iacono spoke to students focusing on ADR early in March and told them if they decide to go into the practice of litigation it is very likely it will be 10 years or more before they get into a courtroom in front of a Superior Court judge, because of problems in civil jus- tice. Because of the growth of ADR, on the other hand, they'll be mediating their first case within a week. "It's a growing area in law school, and that's good — it's important," Iacono says. "It's a great procedure. For our fellow citizens, a lawsuit is a pathological expe- rience. Arbitration is informal, relaxed, nobody bites them. It's a process that flows and you get a dispute settled in a day. What could be better?" Untitled-6 1 2017-04-13 3:38 PM

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